The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for mechanically removing solids and/or insoluble liquids from a liquid body. The invention relates more specifically to the construction and use of a collector wheel which is operable to collect and remove oil at sea and in beach areas, to decontaminate liquid bodies contaminated with undissolved chemicals, to treat waste water, to be used as a dredger or as a supplement to it, or to be used for fishing for shrimps, etc.
The principal object of the present invention is to remedy the deficiencies of the existing devices for oil separation and removal, by improving the efficiency, increasing the speed of the oil separation process and lowering the energy consumption. A second object of the invention is to avoid damage to the environment caused by the separation and removal process. A third object of the invention is to lessen the dependence of the separation and removal process on weather conditions such as wind, wave movements, temperature, and on the spreading of the contaminating material on the surface of and down into the liquid body.